A long way from home
by aheartfulloffandoms
Summary: The Starkids were just having a fun time at Lauren and Jamie's apartment, but when someone goes missing, everything goes to shit. (Rated T for for swearing and other dark themes)- (It's just in case really)- Pairings- Walkpez, Beredith, and Jylan.
1. Chapter 1- fun and games

**Hi, this is my first starkid story on here! I really hope you like it! I know it's short, but that's because this is really just an intro chapter. I'll try to update as much as possible!**

**Chapter 1- fun and games**

It was a normal day like any other, Lauren Lopez, Jamie Lynn Beatty, Joe Walker, Meredith Stepien, Brian Holden, Brian Rosenthal, Joey Ritcher and Dylan Saunders were all hanging out at Lauren and Jamie's apartment. Joe was in the process of finishing everybody's lunch for them. Jamie looked at him in shock, "How on earth do you manage to eat so much!?" Joe just shrugged and continued shoving food into his mouth. Lauren returned from the kitchen and sat on the couch. "So what do you guys want to do?" Everyone shrugged. That day had been more of a lazy day, they had a glee marathon, everyone cheering every time they saw Darren. It was so weird seeing him on TV like that. After a while though, everyone was getting tired of the recycled plot lines and cheerful singing. Dylan suggested that they play a game of poker. No one had any money so they just played strip poker. Before they started Lauren ran into her room. She came back wearing 3 sweaters, a winter coat, 2 pairs of socks, gloves, a winter hat and 3 baseball caps, and a pair of shorts over her pants. "Lo, I don't think that's allowed." Meredith looked skeptical. "Come on! You all know I'm a terrible liar, even with all of this I'll still be the first one naked!" Everyone just shrugged in agreement, it was true, despite being a great actress, Lauren couldn't bluff to save her life. So the game began. Lauren, Jamie and Brian R. were the worst. After a few rounds, Jamie had lost both her socks, her shirt and the hat she was wearing. Lauren had lost her jacket and all her sweaters, plus two hats and a glove. Brian R. was already in only his underwear. Dylan, Joe and Brian H. were all still fully clothed. Meredith, and Joey had only lost two articles of clothing each. Of course Dylan ended up winning, he was by far the best poker player out of the group. Lauren laughed and shoved Dylan playfully, "Now I know why you wanted to play, because you would obviously win!" Dylan laughed and picked her up over his shoulder. "Gee Lo, I have no idea how you figured that out!" Lauren continued to hit Dylan's back until he dropped her down on the couch. After everything calmed down, Dylan gave everyone back almost all their stuff. He kept one of Lauren's baseball caps. When Lauren protested he just held the hat out of her reach until she gave up. They had so much fun they didn't even realize how late it had gotten. Lauren was sitting in Joe's lap when she rubbed her eyes and yawned. Looking at the clock she gasped, "Holy shit you guys!" She was slurring her words, "It's like 11:00! That's so late!" Joe laughed, causing Lauren to shake on top of him. "Is little Lo Lo tired?" Joe asked, but Lauren had already fallen asleep. No one had any idea how she did that. She seemed to have a knack for falling asleep. One second she was there the next, she had drifted off. "Typical Lauren" Brolden chuckled. Joe stood up, carrying Lauren in his arms like a baby. "I'll put her to bed, I guess this party is coming to an end." Everyone suddenly realized how tired they really were and everyone slowly left while Jamie cleaned up. Joe had just put Lauren down to bed when she mumbled, "Thanks Joe, I knew you would fall for it." Joe smiled and laughed to himself as he shut the door. Joe looked at Jamie, "She tricked me!" Without even looking up Jamie responded, "I know, she's lazy like that." Joe just shook his head and left, unaware that it would be a long time until he saw his friend again.


	2. Chapter 2- missing

**A/N: I would really like if you guys could review, I don't really know where this story is going but it would be helpful if you guys could give me feedback. Thanks! -Aheartfulloffandoms**

The next morning, Jamie didn't see Lauren. Sure, Lauren liked to sleep in, but never this much. It was worrying Jamie. She decided to go check on her friend. She went into Lauren's room, expecting to find her asleep in some obscure position, but she wasn't there. Jamie looked around the apartment but she guessed that Lauren must have woken up early for once. Of course she forgot her phone though, typical Lauren. Looking at her watch Jamie realized that she had to get to rehearsal, it was supposed to start in 15 minutes. When Jamie got there, she didn't see Lauren. She just shrugged it off, obviously she would be late, she normally was anyway. But well into the meeting Lauren still hadn't shown up. During the quick break they were taking, Joe walked over to Jamie. "Hey Jamie! Where's Lauren?" He look a little worried himself

"I don't know, she wasn't there when I woke up, so I guess she got up early and went somewhere, she left her phone at home though."

"Hmmm.." Joe began fidgeting his hands the way he did whenever he was nervous. "I'm sure she'll turn up eventually, she probably just forgot about rehearsal." Joe didn't sound too convinced though.

"Yeah, you're probably right." Jamie turned to walk back to the group but Joe grabbed her arm.

"Jamie?"

"Yeah Walker?"

"Could you, maybe text me when you figure out what happened to Lauren? You know, just so I know?"

"No problem Walker," Jamie smiled and they went back to the group together. Joe was having a hard time focusing on rehearsals, his mind was on Lauren. He was worried about her, he knew she was probably fine, and he was probably over reacting, but he didn't want Lauren to get hurt. He had loved Lauren ever since they met in college on the first day of class. He had come late, and the only empty seat was between Lauren and Darren. They had all become friends so fast, but Joe had always thought of her as so much more. He knew from the moment he laid eyes on her that he was in love with her. He remembered the dark times of Sophomore year when Lauren started dating Brian H. It had been so hard for Joe to watch her happy with someone else, let alone his best friend. Those 4 months that they dated for were agony for Joe. When they finally broke up it felt like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Now, just the thought of the possibility that Lauren might be in any sort of danger made Joe want to vomit. He just went on with rehearsal though, praying that Lauren was fine.

That night when Jamie got home, Lauren still wasn't there, but there was a note on the coffee table. She could have sworn that the note wasn't there that morning. She hoped it would be an explanation from Lauren but she had no such luck. The note was typed, but creased in many places, as if someone had folded it carefully to fit into their pocket. It said:

_Sweet Jamie, _

_Surely you've noticed by now that Lauren isn't here, that was my doing. Now, don't worry, she is unharmed, for now, but if you don't follow my instructions, little Lauren here will feel the pain. I am watching you, and I will know if you tell anyone. As far as your friends are concerned, Lauren is sick and doesn't want to see anyone. My first request is that you be a dear and cause some havoc. I want a relationship ruined. And I think you know which one I'm talking about. But just in case, look at the back._

_-Your old friend, RR_

Jamie flipped the note over, even though she already knew what she would find. There was a drawing of a broken heart, on side had _BH _written on it and the other side said _MS. _"Meredith and Brian," Jamie whispered to herself. She sat on the couch and read the note over and over again, tears running down her face. She prayed that this was all some joke, that it was just one of her friends playing a prank on her. But even just thinking that to herself she didn't believe it. Suddenly her phone buzzed. It scared Jamie, and she jumped a little. I was a text from Joe. It read: _Hey, is Lauren ok?_ Jamie held her face in her hands, she didn't want to lie to Walker, but what other choice did she have. She texted back: _Yeah, she went to the doctor without telling anyone, she's just a little sick._ Joe responded almost immediately: _That's good, tell her I said I hope she feels better._ Jamie sighed and ran to her room and found an old shoe box and put the note in it. She wanted to have all the notes if she ever went to the police about this. She then went to bed, only to lie restlessly, dreading what she would be forced to do.


	3. Chapter 3- trapped

**A/N: So this chapter is a look at what is happening to Lauren, and basically every few chapters there will be a chapter like this. Just tell me if you like this and I will try to post a good balance of Lauren and Jamie chapters.**

Lauren woke up in a small dark room. The only source of light was a single hanging lightbulb in the middle of the room. Her hands were chained behind her back with heavy metal handcuffs. Those handcuffs were then connected to the wall by a huge chain. The metal cuffs were on too tight, and she could feel them digging into her wrists. The room was empty, except for a metal table underneath the lightbulb. It seemed to have objects on it but Lauren couldn't tell what they were. She had no idea how she got there, or how long she had been there. The last memory she had before waking up was of Joe, holding her in his arms. He was carrying her somewhere, she couldn't remember where, but she wished she could return to that embrace. There was an echoing pain in her head, so she guessed she must have been knocked out to be brought there. She waited for how long, she didn't know, before a figure came in finally. The figure was dressed in all black, they even had black gloves on. They kept their face shielded and walked over to Lauren quickly. She couldn't tell if it was a man or a woman. their figure was large, but they didn't seem large enough to be a large man. They had on a hood and a mask. The mask was all white, and covered the person's whole face except for their mouth. "Where am I ?" Lauren asked, looking around trying to find a way out. "Bitch." the figure muttered under their breath. They then proceeded to kick Lauren in the gut. "Who are you?" Lauren whimpered, doubling over in pain. "Does it even matter?" The voice was harsh-sounding, but it wasn't one Lauren recognized. Lauren stayed quiet, keeping her eyes on the floor. The person punched her in the face. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting to do that." It said. A tear slid out of Lauren's eye and the person laughed maliciously. "Welcome to your new home." Lauren dared not to move a muscle, she just imagined Joe's arms around her. The tears were steadily flowing from her eyes now, and she had no control over them. The person leaned down, looking down on Lauren. Lauren was too afraid to look up. "Awww, is little Lolo crying?" The person went over to the table and seemed to be choosing an item. They finally returned with a long, slender knife, that gleamed maliciously in the dim light. Lauren tried to back away, but just ran into the wall. The figure grabbed her by the neck and forced her to look up. Lauren looked through the eye holes of the mask and saw a pair of blue eyes staring back at her. She knew them from somewhere, but she couldn't place them with a face. "I like when people look at me when i'm talking. got that?" They pulled the knife up in front of Lauren's eyes, taunting her with it. Lauren nodded and swallowed, trying to move her head away from the blade. She could tell the person was smiling at her, maybe even laughing in their head. "Afraid of a little knife now are we Lolo?" Lauren didn't speak, she just wanted to get away from that knife. They brought the knife up to her cheek, dragging it slowly along her cheek leaving a straight trail of blood. Lauren winced as it went along, tears rolling out of her eyes. "ohh, does that hurt? I'm so sorry!" The person stabbed the knife into the wall, scraping the side of Lauren's head. They slapped her in the face before going leaving the room, slamming the door. At that moment Lauren just wished that she could die, that she could drift away and never come back. She collapsed on to the floor and stared at the door. So she just stayed there, eventually she fell asleep. She was back home all of a sudden, sitting in her and Jamie's apartment, she was lying on the couch, and watching a movie. Her head was resting in Joe's lap and he was playing with her hair absent-mindedly. She smiled. He looked down at her, "Oh, so your awake." He chuckled a bit."yeah, I had a terrible dream though." She smiled at Joe, who brushed a stray hair out of her face, "It's alright, it's all over now." She sat up and hugged Joe tight, and he held her closely. "You're here with me now." She smiled, but then there was a loud thud, Joe the world around her was fading and Joe was lost in the darkness. And suddenly, she was back.


	4. Chapter 4- How to Destroy a Relationship

**A/N: So sorry that this took so long to get up! I had a huge paper due for school so that took up most of my writing time! Good news is, the newest chapter for A Very Starkid Vacay should be up within the next week and the next update for this story will be in around a week or two! **

Jamie woke up the next morning hoping that the whole incident with Lauren had been a dream. She ran over to her closet where she had put the box. She pulled away her pile of shirts and behind them, there was the box. "Shit." She muttered under her breath. She looked at the note and sighed. "Break up Brian and Mere? How the hell am I gonna do that?" She thought to herself. She stuffed the note back into the box and hid the box again. As she walked into the kitchen, she noticed a small yellow envelope taped to the fridge. She sighed, she didn't want to go anywhere near that note. But she did anyway, she knew she had to. In the envelope there were 5 pieces of paper. The first was a note. It said:

_Jamie,_

_Having trouble with your job I gave you? Here's a little something to help you along. I want them broken up by Friday, or else. Inside this envelope I've also included a little "motivation" incase you don't think you want to go through with this. Have fun!_

_-RR_

_P.S. Don't even think about going to the police about this, or I will make Lauren suffer so much she will wish she were dead._

Tears flowed down Jamie's cheeks as she set the note aside. She covered her face with her hands and cried. She just wanted Lauren back. It was already Tuesday, she had no idea how she would be able to break Brian and Meredith up in time. Next she pulled out a picture, it was of Lauren and she looked awful. She had cuts and bruises all over her body and her hands were chained behind her back. Her eyes were shut tightly like she was in pain. She seemed like she was unconscious though, her body was limp even though her face was tightly wound in agony. Her normally bright, tan face was pale, She had a black eye and her lip was bleeding. It killed Jamie to see her best friend in so much pain like that. But the only way she could help Lauren would be by hurting Brian and Meredith. They way things were going, she was afraid to look at the last 3 pieces of paper. More pictures. She took out the first one. It was a picture of Lauren and Brian talking at some party, it was impossible to tell when the picture was taken. The next picture was of them hugging and the last picture was of them kissing! Jamie was shocked. She couldn't believe that Brian would cheat on Meredith, they seemed so happy together. She took the letter and the picture of Lauren and hid them in the box in her closet. She then put the 3 pictures back in the envelope and put it in her bag She looked at the clock and saw that she was late, so she rushed out the door to rehearsal for their newest show, Starship.

Jamie rushed into rehearsal as some people were on stage rehearsing a scene. She smiled, but everyone could see that she was distraught. While Brian was practicing his scene with Joey at the end of the show. Joe ran walked over to Jamie. "How's Lauren?" He asked.

"Not any better, she still really sick, she can't even get out of bed." Joe looked upset.

"So I can't come over and see her?" He asked, looking disheartened.

"No," she sighed, "That probably wouldn't be a good idea."

"Well, tell her I said feel better!" He smiled and she smiled back, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"I will." Jaime knew he could see right through her smile, but at this point, she really didn't care. She looked on stage as Joe left and saw that they were starting the scene where the starship rangers were first introduced to the audience. Brian was filling in for Lauren as Taz. Joey had just finished his scene and he came over and sat next to Jamie where she was going over her lines. He watched her for a minute. "Hey." He said

"Hey" she didn't look up.

"Are you ok? You seem kinda upset?"

"Don't worry about me, taking care of Lauren has kind of wiped me out is all." She looked up.

"Oh, well I could, umm you know come and help you out if you want."

"Thanks, but I think I'm alright."

"If you say so," He shrugged and sighed. She went back to her lines and he took a deep breath. "Hey, umm Jamie?" he moved a little closer.

"Yeah?" she looked up again.

"I was wondering if maybe... umm... you might wanna catch a movie with me sometime?" He wiped his sweaty palms on his pants.

"Joey Ritcher, are you asking me out on a date?" She seemed to have been shaken awake.

"Yes...No...do you want me to be asking you out on a date?"

"Of course I'll go on a date with you!" She laughed and he looked relieved. At least one thing was going right for her today.

As she went back to her lines she listened to what was happening on stage. Sure, Brian was funny, but he couldn't pull off the role like Lauren could. And yeah, it was funny watching other people trying to play Lauren's part, but everyone could tell that it just didn't feel right without her. While Meredith was on stage, Jamie slipped the envelope into her purse.

At the end of rehearsal, Jamie left quickly, saying that she had to take care of Lauren. "Well, she rushed out of here." Meredith said to Brian, grabbing her purse.

"Yeah, Lo must be really sick," Brian put his arm around her and they headed outside.

"Come on, let's go back to my place and we can watch a movie." Meredith said, taking Brian's hand as they walked down the street towards Meredith's apartment.

Brian sat on the couch and searched Netflix for a good movie, while Meredith made popcorn in the kitchen. Her phone buzzed and she went to get it from her purse to check it. While searching her purse, she found a strange envelope that hadn't been there that morning. She walked into the living room holding up the envelope, "Hey Bri, do you know what this is?"

"No, I've never seen it before," He shook his head and she shrugged. She sat next to him and he put his arm around her. She opened the envelope and looked inside. There were three pieces of paper. She pulled them out. "Pictures," she said to herself. She looked at the first and second ones. "They're of you and Lauren at some party." She said, and Brian craned his neck to look,"Wait pictures of what?" he asked and she looked at the second picture.

"I'm not sure, but this one's just you and Lo hugging." She looked at the last picture and he jaw dropped, he laid back expression turned into an expression of extreme pain and anger. "Brian, what the fuck is this and when was it taken!?" She yelled

"I don't know! I don't remember kissing Lauren since we dated in college!"

"Oh, so you were drunk and cheating!?" Meredith shook his arm off of her shoulder and stood.

"No, babe, that's probably a picture from college!" Brian stood, trying to calm Meredith.

"Probably!? Bri, that's the shirt I bought you for your birthday this year!" She stormed over to the door and held it open. "I want you out! Right now!" She yelled. He tried to reason with her but she wouldn't hear it. As he walked down the hallway she stepped out and yelled after him, "We are OVER Brian Holden! OVER!" She slammed the door and the tears began. She looked over to her phone and the text that started it all. It was from Jaime:

_Guess what!? Joey just asked me out! Now maybe you and Bri can double date with us!_

Meredith just couldn't handle it anymore, she sunk to the ground and broke down in tears. She finally decided to text Jamie back after she had gotten most of the tears out.

_Sorry to crush your dreams of double dates, but I just broke up with Bri._

She sighed as a tear rolled down her cheek and she wondered what would happen next.


	5. Chapter 5- a Torturous existence

** Chapter 5- A Torturous Existence.**

**A/N: Heyyyyyyyy I know I took forever to post this, but I have exams coming up and I'm suuuuuuuuuuuper busy. I've been writing chapters by hand in class, and then later transferring them to my computer so this is a long pcess for me. I have the next two chapters of my other fic, A Very Starkid Vacay, written, just not transferred, so those should be up as soon as I can find the time. Again so sorry about the wait, but here's another Lauren chapter!**

Lauren woke to the sound of a metal dish clattering on the floor. the figure stood over her and kicked the dish at her. The edge of the dish hit her and left a small cut just above her eyebrow. When she whimpered in pain, the figure pointed to the disgusting slop in the dish. "Eat up, thats your food for the week, if you're lucky, you might get some more in a few days." All of a sudden Lauren was aware of the sharp pain in her stomach. She had no idea how long she had been here, but she did know that she hadn't eaten since before her arrival. But whatever brown mush was in the dish was not in anyway appetizing to her. She turned her head away from the foul smell, then pushed herself up into a sitting position against the wall. "Not hungry? Hmm, well that's fine, this is all you get for the week, you'll come around eventually." The person knelt down to Lauren's level, and she could see their cold blue eyes. For a second, she almost thought she recognized the eyes, but the flash of recognition was gone in a split second. She didn't know what made her do it, but all of a sudden, she spit in her captor's face. It didn't get through to their face, but it had made them significantly more angry. "Let. Me. Go." Lauren spoke slowly, with more intensity and anger than she ever had felt in her life. The person just laughed, which made Lauren want to punch them in the face even more. She struggled against the chains to no avail. "Oh don't even try." They said, but Lauren kept fighting. Her captor rushed over and slapped Lauren across the face, she slumped over against the wall, cheek stinging. "You'd better listen to me when I'm talking." The figure then grabbed Lauren by her hair and held her up against the wall. She squirmed and tried to escape their grip, but she was only hurting herself more. Tears streamed down her cheeks, and even though she couldn't see the face behind the mask, she could have sworn that they were smiling at her pain. "What do you want!" She screamed, desperate. Her captor threw her down against the wall and slapped her again. "I want a lot of things," they said, standing up straight. They walked over to the table and looked over it, searching for the proper device. "Seeing you suffer was first on my list, and now that wish is coming true!" They let out a sinister laugh that made Lauren shiver. "I want Meredith and Brian both crushed, almost beyond repair, so that I can swoop in and save the day! I want Jamie driven completely to insanity! And my favorite thing that I want, I want Joe to suffer this heartbreak forever, and see how it feels to lose what matters most to you in this world. There's so much more that I want, but i don't want to bore you with that. We need to get down to business." They turned around, holding a long menacing looking spiked whip. Lauren whimpered and pressed her back against the wall. "Please, don't" her voice was high and quiet with fear. Her captor just walked closer slowly and laughed. "Alright little Lolo, where should we start?" They grabbed her chin, and tilted it upwards, so that she could look right into those menacing, familiar eyes. They threw her down onto her stomach and then lifted the whip. Lauren screamed in agony as the whip was brought down on her back numerous times. Her shirt was ripped and soaked with blood already. Tears streamed down her face, and with every strike of the whip, she let out a small cry of agony. The pain only got worse and worse and her captor seemed to be enjoying themselves. "Please! No more!" Lauren yelled with her little strength. And to her surprise, the person stopped. "Awww, am I hurting little Lauren?" They said in a mocking way. "I guess we'll just have to try something else. The person dragged the whip across her cheek, leaving a trail of blood as she whimpered in pain. They then grabbed something else off the table and put the bloody whip down. She held up a small key. The key was about the size of Lauren's index finger. it was old and rusty, just like the chains digging into her wrists. "This is the key to those chains around your wrists. If you can get it, then you can take those nasty chains off." They smirked. "But you'll never get it." They dropped the key in the far corner of the room, before walking to the door. But they stopped suddenly and turned. "Wow, its only been three days! Think of all the fun we still can have together!" And with that they ducked out the door. Lauren struggled against the chains, she pulled as close as she could to the key, but she was not even close. Tears stung at her eyes, she wished that this was all some horrible, twisted nightmare. She tried pinching herself, but nothing happened. She curled into a ball and looked at the food dish lying on the floor. "Three days," she said to herself, "I haven't eaten in three days." She tried to decide whether or not it was worth it to eat the food. She dragged herself over to the dish and looked at the slop inside. it looked awful, but she sighed and bent over, taking a small bite. She didn't know what the hell it could be, but it was horrible. She gagged, but eventually swallowed it down. She didn't know if she could eat anymore. So she went back to lying in a ball on the floor and slowly she drifted off.

She was sitting on the couch, drinking hot chocolate with Jamie, and they were watching a christmas movie. They had just put up the tree and were letting it fall before they decorated it. They were watching their favorite movie, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. Lauren ate a marshmallow from her mug and smiled. Marshmallows were one of her favorite foods. They sat next to each other, enjoying the movie, when there was a knock on the door. Lauren got up and opened it. Standing there, holding a candy cane and a small bouquet of red and white roses, was Joe Walker. "Joe" She said, and he just smiled. "Hey Lo." he sounded nervous. "Umm... I really didn't think this through, I just came by to tell you that you don't know hold long i've loved you. I've loved you since the day we met. And, well, what I'm trying to say is, uhh, would you maybe want to go on a date with me sometime?" After he finished, he smiled a little and held out the flowers and candy cane. She smiled. "I would love to go on a date with you!" She leaned in and kissed him and it was the happiest moment of her life. As she pulled away, Joe looked down in horror. She followed his gaze to a pool of blood forming on his shirt surrounding the tip of a blade sticking out of his stomach. She screamed and grabbed Joe, supporting him, as he collapsed to the ground. She held him in her arms, and watched as the life drained from his eyes. She cried and buried her face in his chest, sobbing. She looked up and saw his killer standing in the doorway. That horrible thing, it wasn't even a person, it was the one who had kidnapped her. The one who had tortured her and done unspeakable things to her. She screamed at them, she got up and ran over to them, but when she went to hit them, her fists just passed through their body, as if they were a ghost. She screamed and yelled, but the sounds were caught in her throat. She sunk to the ground and cried, her body wracked with sobs. She looked around and she saw that her apartment, her life, and everything she knew was melting away. But she was frozen in time, screams stuck in her throat, movements stopped before they could be carried out. Suddenly her entire body jerked forward without warning and she was back in hell. "Great, out of one nightmare, and into another." She sighed. Her entire body was covered in sweat and her ankle was throbbing. She was pretty sure that she had kicked a wall in her sleep. She was a mess of sweat and tears. She wished that she could just drop dead when she saw the figure appear in the doorway once again, and she heard that sickening laugh.


End file.
